‘Mad-dog’ in court for metal theft

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A MAN with a SKULL tattooed on his face dubbed ‘Mad Dog’, who shot to notoriety after appearing on The Jeremy Kyle Show, has been spared jail for stealing metal worth thousands of pounds.

Numb skull Deon Hulse, 29, who was called a ‘liar and a cheat’ by the famous chat-show host, planned to cash in on the seven metal market frames worth £3,500, which he stole from Brownhills Market, near Walsall, in the West Midlands.

Walsall Magistrates Court heard on Tuesday that police had seen a Ford Transit lorry travelling the wrong way along a Brownhills street at 9.30pm on October 25 last year.

Officers later saw the vehicle had stopped and spotted several men trying to tie down pieces of metal.

JPs were told the men fled but officers arrested Hulse, who was left stood at the side of the vehicle.

Prosecuting, Jo Taylor, said:”Upon inspection the frames were found to be market stalls. These were taken from Brownhills Market.

“CCTV showed the vehicle parked next to the storage facility. Each frame is worth £500.

“The defendant was taken to the police station and during interview made a full and frank admission.

“He said he helped load them up and believed they were stolen and planned to sell the metal to make money.”

Dad-of-two Hulse, from Brownhills, near Walsall, West Mids, admitted a charge of theft along with another of possession of cannabis with intent to supply after GBP280 worth of the drug was seized at his home on July 15 last year.

He claimed he was looking after it for a friend who was on holiday when questioned by police.

Hulse, who is famous for his tattoo-covered face, appeared on The Jeremy Kyle Show when his then girlfriend Catherine volunteered the couple for an episode called ‘How could my boyfriend destroy his own face?’

After telling the audience he didn’t care what he looked like, Hulse then failed a lie detector test asking if he had slept with any other women – leading Jeremy Kyle to say: “You are a liar and a cheat and you look ridiculous.”

Mitigating, Brij Chaudhry, said Hulse, who lives with his long-term partner, was pressured into helping steal the metal as recompense for getting his friend’s cannabis seized by police.

“He has got involved with doing a favour for somebody that has spiralled out of control,” Mr Chaudhry said.

He was said to be close to his family and a positive influence on his autistic child.

Magistrates sentenced him to eight weeks in prison, suspended for 12-months for the theft charge and four weeks in custody, also suspended for 12-months for the drug offence, to run concurrently.

Chairman of the bench Irene Gutteridge told Hulse: “We consider that the theft of the metal of such high value does cross the custody threshold, especially because this offence was committed whilst on police bail.”

Hulse was also made subject of a supervision order and ordered to pay £85 court costs.